Write a letter to terrorists! Children told to ‘respect’ killers in new teaching aid
Write a letter to terrorists! Children told to ‘respect’ killers in new teaching aid
By Jon Coates, Express, May 28, 2017
A NEW teaching aid that recommends schoolchildren as young as seven “write a letter to a terrorist” to help understand their motives has been condemned as “dangerous and misguided”.
New teaching aid that recommends schoolchildren as young as seven 'write a letter to a terrorist'
The book, Talking About Terrorism, published weeks before the Manchester Arena atrocity, describes the indiscriminate mass murder of innocent members of the public as a “type of war”.
It tells primary age children that terrorists kill people because they believe they are being treated “unfairly and not shown respect”.
It gives examples of “terrorists” whose ideas then turn out to be right: “The Suffragettes used violence and were called terrorists,,,,” it stated.
The Suffragettes used violence and were called terrorists' the book claims
The book, Talking About Terrorism, was published weeks before the Manchester Arena atrocity
“Today many people think of them as brave women and admire their struggle for the right to vote.”
In an activity recommended for pupils aged seven to 11, teachers are urged to “invite children to write a letter to a terrorist. If they could ask a terrorist six questions, what would they be?”
The book, published by Brilliant Publications and containing a foreword by Peter Wanless, the chief executive of the NSPCC, has been slammed by critics who say it is potentially dangerous.
Chris McGovern, chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, said the letter task would confuse and potentially upset pupils.
He said: “This a crackpot idea based on the misguided notion that primary school children must engage with, and show “respect” for, religious fanatics who are seeking to kill them.
“It is part of the “British Values” agenda that is being forced on schools by Ofsted and the educational establishment."
“The primary school classroom is not the place to humanise terrorism by ‘pretend dialogue’.”
In trying to help children “understand” terrorists’ motives, the book invites sympathy for the killers, critics claim.
And by invoking the Suffragettes and Nelson Mandela, it leads children to question whether terrorism might be justifiable, they say.
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SUBMIT!!!
England is lost.
Agreed. This is such damnable stupidity of the highest order,
In trying to help children “understand” terrorists’ motives, the book invites sympathy for the killers, critics claim.
I don't think that trying to understand the motives of a particular group of terrorists means being sympathetic to them. I mean how can you stop them unless you understand what it is they believe they are fighting for. When we invaded Afghanistan I supported it, but one of the things I hated about it was George W. Bush constantly bleating put that we were doing it because "They hate us for our freedoms", which was a huge, stinking pile of horse shit. It was simplistic and moronic and just plain wrong. Al Qaeda didn't hate us for our freedoms. They hated us because during the first Gulf War we stationed troops and aircraft and tanks and such in Saudi Arabia, which they considered to be a violation of their holy land. Of course it in no way excused what they did, but if we are going to fight and enemy let's at least understand and accept the real reason why they are wanting to fight us. It might take us toward a path of stopping the fighting. I mean look at North Ireland.
In order to have real victory over an enemy and then peace with them, you have to understand them first.
Thank you for your opinion.